"More men usually work extra hours or overtime than women; however, more women are usually not compensated for this work, so one-in-three women aren't compensated for this work compared to one-in-five men," she said.

The bureau says that could be due to problems in industries with high female workforces, rather than gender discrimination.

Bureau of Statistics study findings

The Working Time Arrangements survey found that in November 2012 there were 10.1 million persons aged 15 years and over who were employees in their main job. When excluding owner managers of incorporated enterprises, there were 9.3 million employees in their main job. Of these:

78 per cent had paid leave entitlements.

75 per cent could choose when their holidays were taken, with a further 12 per cent who could sometimes choose.

40 per cent had some say in their start and finish times.

36 per cent were able to work extra hours in order to take time off.

34 per cent usually worked extra hours or overtime, of which 26 per cent (823,400) were not compensated for the extra hours worked.

16 per cent usually worked shift work.

7 per cent usually worked the majority of their hours between 7pm and 7am in all of their jobs.

25 per cent had earnings/income that varied from one pay period to the next.

37 per cent had hours that varied weekly or they were usually required to be on call or standby.